Another cool day.

The sun sure was nice today and so about 10:30, I decided I would go on a bike ride.  My goal was 20 miles.  Not a bad goal, huh?  Don't let that sun fool you because I got to 8 mile and decided it was to cold to go any further.  My hands were really cold.  The wind went right through me.  When I got back home I checked the outside thermometer and it was 34.  No wonder I froze. 
    

A better view of the "bad" way. 

Do you see why I didn't go to Coleman?  This is the bad section!!

So after lunch, I decided to try it again.  I had the urge to ride
and this time I found a pair of light gloves and put them on my hands.  I went down Nielsen to 8 Mile and looked at the Rail Trail.  The left way was very snow covered and slippery, and it would take me toward Coleman and  if I went to the right, toward Sanford,  it was clear and dry.  So which way would you choose to go?  Since my bike doesn't have snow tires, I wouldn't go to Coleman.  So, yup, I picked toward Sanford.

This is the entrance to the "Clear" section of the trail.

A better view of the "Clear" way

The Icy Bridge!  Beware! 

By the IGA, there is a steep hill going under a bridge.  I noticed that it looked very slippery and the closer I got to it, yup, it was glare ice.  So I slowed way down and managed to get through it without tipping over.  I'm really glad that I came to that spot going that direction as if I would have come from Midland, I would have been flying down the hill and hitting that ice at a high speed would not have been a pretty picture (for me)

The way towards Midland

Can you see why I turned around?

I rode further than last time but the further I went toward Midland, the worse the trail was.  Now the "clear and dry" spots were few and far between.  Instead I found a trail that was covered with ice and snow.  So after trying to ride through those "icy places", and walking my bike alot,


I turned around and headed for home.  I made it back home with only seeing a couple of birds along the way.  Don't ask me what kind they were cuz I have no idea.  I only needed a mile and a half to have 51 miles on my bike so after resting a little while, I went and finished up my miles.

        So now I only need 1961 more to make my goal.  Yup, one mile at a time is all I need.






Until next time, when the tread meets the pavement.

Another day on my journey

I wanted to ride this afternoon as I heard that bad weather might be headed our way.  So I put on a sweatshirt and started out.  My goal was to get 15 to 20 miles in.  Well, after riding a short distance, I realized that it was rather cold and maybe I wouldn't ride that far.  I rode a total of  only 3 miles.  After getting back home I checked the outdoor thermometer and it said 43.  Ya, I guess that is kind of cool without a jacket.  I can't wear a jacket very easily when I ride.  It weighs me down to much and I can't fly like the wind.

It amazed me in my short ride though how much people have littered in the ditches over the winter months.  It's kind of sad that some people can't take their garbage home with them.  I didn't see any birds or animals on my short ride.  Guess it's too cold for them to be out too.

Well, at least I am 3 miles closer to my goal. I have 36 miles done.   For those of you who don't know, Cindy and Sherry have talked me into having my goal for 2011 miles since this is the year of 2011.  So we will see.   I now only have 1975 more miles to go.  

So that's my journey for today.  See ya next time when the "Tread Hits the Pavement."

I braved the cold and rode.

I decided when I saw the sun shining that I would try riding.  So I braved the cold and started out.  I rode down 9 Mile  to the Rail Trail.  For those of you who don't know what the Rail Trail is, it used to be a railroad track.  But they took the rails out and paved it so bikers and walkers or joggers can have a good place to go and not worry about cars.  I saw my first Robin.  I rode to Sanford, up past the IGA store and a little ways past the cement place.  It was a little windy but the sun felt good.  It was still cold though.  Several times I had to pull my sweatshirt down and tuck my hands in to get them warmed up.  2 days ago, when I tried to get on the Rail Trail at 9 Mile, it was covered with snow yet.  But today it was mostly clear except in a few spots.  The one spot I saw ice with snow on top of it but the snow was so deep that I had to take my chance and ride through the easy spot.  Well, that spot wasn't very easy and I almost wiped out.  My bike swerved but I was able to stop without tipping over.  So I pushed it the rest of the way through the bad spot and then hopped on and took off again.
      It took me 1 hour to go 10,8 miles.  Hopefully my time will get better.
              So ya, now my total is 32 miles so that only leaves me 1968 miles to go.  For those of you who know me, my original goal for this year was 1700, but Curt and Sarah talked me into going for 2000.  So we'll see.


   So the journey has begun.  I'm ready to ride and we'll see what each day brings.

Early start

This is March 19th, and I have 21 miles done. Off to a good start. Last year I didn't start riding till March 22nd. So hopefully I will reach my goal of 2000 miles. It's cold today though so I'm trying to decide whether to go or not.


So that's 21 miles done and 1979 miles to go. The countdown begins.